REDI: Renewable Energy Demonstration Initiative

Editor’s note: Information for this article was taken from the AL Huber Website.

REDI is a partnership between A.L. Huber General Contractor, VQ Wind, and Burns & McDonnell. As leaders in the construction, engineering and technology fields, the team has come together to test new technologies as well as demonstrate alternative-energy advancements to the Kansas City community. The team will monitor the solar and wind energy output. A “demonstration” area will be open to the public and visitors will be educated on the different technologies being used. The demonstration project is located at 10770 El Monte in Overland Park, KS.

A.L. Huber is a building and property owner with the vision to build an alternative-energy demonstration project “in our backyard” in Overland Park, KS. As a commercial construction company, A.L. Huber is a leader in sustainable efforts on construction projects from the job site to the building.

VQ Wind is headquartered in the San Francisco Bay Area and was formed in May, 2009. The new turbine used in this demonstration project was designed by AeroNet, a partner company of VQ Wind, with headquarters in Seoul, Korea and is the first of a family of Small Wind Turbines to be installed in North America with power ratings between 1.5kW and 100kW.

Burns & McDonnell is a world leader in energy engineering and one of Kansas City’s own. Burns & McDonnell provided the procurement of the wind turbine and engineering expertise for both the PV-panels and the wind turbine before, during and after installation.

REDI is an ambitious education and demonstration project. It has been established to provide educational opportunities in wind and solar energy to public and private companies or individuals who are interested in the future of energy. A public energy center at the A.L. Huber office will illustrate energy usage and savings using alternative sources. Wind turbine speed and data will be collected and used for educating the public on utilizing alternative energy. As an educational component, the REDI team worked closely with local institutions to incorporate materials and information relevant to secondary educators and students. www.REDInow.com is a dedicated website with real-time monitoring allowing site visitors to review historical data as well as see current energy utilization.

REDI is a privately owned and operated energy demonstration and education project located in Overland Park, Kansas. It includes solar energy technologies: wind and photovoltaic. The vertical-axis pole-mounted wind turbine is the first of it type in the United States. The double-mounted turbine provides a slow turn rate, which minimizes noise, ice throw and bird kill. The installation and monitoring of a variety of solar photo-voltaic panels will provide education and demonstration of different technologies available to the market.

Elements of the project include:

VQ WindJet 5 Vertical Axis Twin Rotor Wind Turbine. It is an 83-foot high, pole-mounted and weighs 6.5 tons. Diameter of turbine is approximately 15 feet. Height approximately 22 Feet. Potential to generate 5 kW of power with the cutting-edge design, is more efficient than blade-type turbines, and generates power at lower wind speeds. The unique vertical-axis design provides no vibration and a quieter turning than horizontal blades.

Photo-voltaic panels: SunPower 230. Each panel is rated to generate 230 Watts. First phase installation includes 24 photo-voltaic panels. These panels are the most efficient panels currently being manufactured in the world. The A.L. Huber panels include a potential to generate 5.5 kW. PV panels are also serving as awnings over existing windows therefore creating a sunshield effect.

Reclaimed wood siding from Seldom Found. The 100-year-old Douglas Fir wood on the side of the building was flooring from two different 100-year old buildings in Missouri. The wood sun screen will shade the south exposure of the building from the intense summer sun, reducing the building’s heat load. It is also a nice architectural feature that extends the height the building to shield views of air conditioners and roof-top units. The wood is reclaimed from two separate 100-year-old warehouses in Missouri: the Lambert Glove Factory and the Brown Shoe Company.